PC World’s 100 Best Products: Mac-related choices

Editor’s Note: The following article is excerpted from PC World. To read the full article, click here.

Innovative Web applications, powerful processors, spectacular HDTVs, and creative game consoles—we asked you for your favorites and added lots of our own for our annual roundup of the best hardware, software, and services. Then we looked at each product, rating and debating its design, impact, performance, and value to create our ranking of the best tech products available, from 1 to 100.

Here’s just a sampling of some of the Top 30 choices that should be of particular interest to Mac users. Be sure to check out the complete list.

2. Intel Core 2 Duo

It’s superfast, it’s not too expensive, and it uses less energy than its predecessor does. But could Core 2 Duo be too good? Unless AMD can respond to its startling success, the absence of competition could drive up desktop PC prices. That’s how terrific this CPU is. ( desktop CPU; $150 and up)

6. Parallels Desktop

A Mac OS application in PC World ’s Top 10? You bet. With a simple interface and improving 3-D acceleration, Parallels offers the slickest way to run Windows (or any other OS) on Apple’s beautifully designed Intel-based hardware. ( virtualization software; $80)

9. Apple Mac OS X 10.4 “Tiger”

Quick: Name a good Vista feature that goes beyond what’s in Tiger. Yeah, we can’t either. ( operating system; $129)

11. Apple TV

Apple’s media streamer focuses on doing a beautiful job at a few key tasks. Now that it’s out in the wild, hackers can focus on making it do a bunch more cool things. ( media-streaming device; $299)

17. Pandora.com

Sadly, the current scrap over Internet-radio royalty payments may turn this award into a eulogy for Pandora, a nifty Internet radio service that learns your preferences and plays songs you’ve never heard but will probably like. ( digital music site; free)

23. Nikon D40X

Nikon’s shockingly affordable entry-level digital SLR includes a capable help system so that SLR newbies can get the most out of the camera. ( digital SLR camera; $599)

26. Apple iPod, 80GB

Apple may not want to proclaim it the true video iPod, but this 80GB model is more than capable of storing a complete MP3 collection along with a few movies and TV shows. ( MP3 player; $349)

Other Mac-related 100 Best Products selections

32. Sling Media Slingbox Pro, media-streaming device

35. Mozilla Firefox 2, Web browser

37. Nikon D80, digital SLR camera

38. Skype, VoIP software/service

40. Shure E500PTH, headphones

45. Apple iPod Nano, MP3 player

46. Nikon Coolpix S50c, point-and-shoot digital camera

47. Dell Ultrasharp 2007WFP, wide-screen monitor

51. Canon EOS 30D, digital SLR camera

54. Canon Pixma iP4300, inkjet printer; $90

61. Apple iTunes, digital music software

64. Fujifilm FinePix F40fd, point-and-shoot digital camera

65. Canon MP600, inkjet multifunction printer

70. Fujitsu ScanSnap s500, scanner; $495)

71. NEC MultiSync 90GX2, 19-inch LCD monitor

72. Adobe CS3, graphics software suite

76. Wacom Graphire Bluetooth 6×8 Pen Tablet, input device

82. Apple MacBook Pro, power notebook

89. Oki Printing Solutions C3400n, color laser printer

97. Panasonic HDC-SD1, HD camcorder

98. Logitech Harmony 880 Advanced Universal Remote, universal remote control

100. Shure SE210, headphones